Insane
by Tripoli
Summary: Ever wonder about Iggy's drastic change in the new games? After getting into an accident Iggy is left with severe brain damage. His family is now left to cope and take care of the ailing Koopa.
1. Chapter 1

**God, it's been forever since I've written something for the site! It kinda feels good to write again. Anywho, I bring you a multi-chapter fic that I will hopefully finish! **

**Disclaimer: I own natta. Not even my clothes.**

**

* * *

**

"Master Koopa, we know it is a lot to take in for such a short amount of time, but I implore-"

"My son is of royal blood! We Koopas don't just have random accidents that injure us for life! We have shells and bones of steel! Nothing can break them! I guarantee he'll be up and wrecking havoc on the Marios by tomorrow morning!"

"Please sir, you don't understand! Master Ignatius suffered a severe blow to the head when the explosion caused the roof to collapse on top of him! An injury like that usually instantly kills the victim! The external signs are worrying enough, just imagine the damage his brain-"

"Shaddup with your medical crap already! I'm telling you, Iggy will be fine by tomorrow. In fact, I'll just prove it to you right now, that you're just making a big deal about nothing, by just taking off these bandages!"

"Master Boswer! No!" The Medi-Koopa who worked for the House of Koopa reached out to grab Bowser's arm, but was effortlessly pushed to the ground by the large appendage. "Sir, I strongly advise you that removing Master Ignatius' banda-"

Bowser only snorted, smoke billowing out of his nose in annoyance as he reached for his son's bandages and pulled them off. "See? Fit as a…"

While Iggy Koopa looked horrible enough with most of his head covered up, with various burns and bruises littering his body; ripping off the bandages exposed the horrific wound that covered almost a forth of the right side of his face. The entire area was dark purple from excessive bruising, and in the center; the white of his skull, cracked and dented, surrounded by exposed red flesh, partially burnt from the explosion earlier that day. Bowser was visibly taken aback by the sight of the injury that he had not predicted, faltering backwards a few feet.

"Master Bowser, please, I'm sure you see now how dire a situation your child really is in," The Medi-Koopa said, taking advantage for Bowser's moment of weakness to quickly rebandage Iggy's head. "The other Medi-Koopas are preparing for Master Ignatius' surgery-"

"Surgery?"

"Yes sir, surgery. An injury as severe as this has a high risk of infection, which could easily kill him. Brain damage too, is a definite possibility, but to what degree we don't know. We have to cut out the burnt and dead tissue, and then-"

"Enough of the medical explanations and shit. Just tell me, what are the chances of him living through this?"

"Mortality rate is about fifty percent, sir."

Boswer's face sunk into a deeper frown than his usual scowl, but his eyes showed his raw emotion. The worry and fear of whether his middle child would make it or not, and apprehension of the after-affects of such a devastating injury and what its impacts could be on the Koopa family.

Glancing back at Iggy, the Koopa King watched for a moment his unconscious son lying on the large medical bed. The white sheets made his scales look paler, thus making his numerous injuries much more prominent. His rainbow Mohawk, which normally stuck up straight in a somewhat neat fashion, was either burned, or shaved off to make room for the bandages. It was a rather comical sight, and Bowser would of fallen down laughing if it weren't for the melancholy situation that led to it.

"I'm going to my Study. When Iggy gets out of surgery or if there's any other news, send up a Troopa and I'll be right down."

Bowser closed the door behind him, but instead of going off to his study he stopped in the middle of the hallway. Sadness was a rather foreign emotion to him, and he hated it. The Koopa King hated how it twisted his stomach into such a large knot it felt like it would never come undone. He felt numb almost, and in denial that his son could very well die.

The many rejections of Princess Peach never made him feel like this. Sure, it made him feel a little hurt that such a beautiful princess could feel so utterly disgusted at someone as handsome and powerful as the Great King Bowser himself, but he always held optimism that one day he wouldn't have to kidnap the princess, that she would come to him instead, and Mario would come all the way to the Darklands only for him to see the princess happy in his arms. It would be the perfect revenge on the plumber.

Revenge… Was that it? The fact that there was no one to blame for his son's injury? Bowser pondered the thought. If someone had attacked his child instead of his injuries resulting in some freak accident, all his emotions would be instead anger directed into beating up and killing whoever did it. There would be no time to worry or be sad, just on getting revenge. Today, however, was the first major accident Bowser had ever had to experience with any of his children.

"How will I tell them?" Bowser mumbled to himself. The other seven were around when the accident happened, but they never actually saw the state their brother was really in. After the explosion, everyone in the nearby wings who heard had scrambled to see what the noise and commotion was, and the children were blocked out for safety. Ludwig, however, being the oldest at seventeen, was later allowed in.

Bowser cringed at the memory, playing like a movie, reforming in his head. Iggy, when his father arrived, was still conscious and screaming as Kamek and a few Medi-Koopas who were close by when the explosion happened were trying to bandage his quickly bleeding head. Traces of smoke still filled the room that was now filled with the collapsed ceiling, preventing Bowser from seeing what caused the chaos. His primary goal, though, was to get to Iggy.

Kamek had mumbled something about something treatable brain damage (Which Bowser now realized was actually something he misheard and what had caused his denial, and that Kamek instead said untreatable), but Bowser was not listening to him. A rare fatherly instinct, deeply buried in a soul of hatred and scorn, was telling him to get to Iggy, that something was wrong with Iggy. By then Ludwig was allowed in, and was kneeling by his brother's side, trying to get his brother to calm down and stop screaming. He quieted down a bit, reverting instead to sobs of pain while holding Ludwig's hand in a death grip. The oldest Koopa tried to keep him awake, but Iggy only stayed conscious for a few more minutes before collapsing from pain and exhaustion.

Quickly after he was bandaged, two Medi-Koopas laid Iggy on a stretcher and sent him down into the infirmary, a small wing in the back of the castle. Ludwig was sent, after much protest, to watch the other six children and keep them occupied and out of the way. Bowser was told to wait outside, while the Medi-Koopas looked Iggy's injuries.

Bowser imagined how his children would take their brother's possible mental handicap, or even death if the event occurred. Ludwig would try to hide his sorrow, and probably would want to be alone for a while. Lemmy… He would be crushed. Lemmy and Iggy were almost like twins. Roy would probably stop beating him up, and hide his emotions much like Ludwig. Morton… Bowser cringed. Morton loved to deal with his problems by talking. Wendy and Larry weren't very close to him, and Bowser Jr. was probably too young to fully understand.

"Father?" A quiet yet deep German voice called from behind him. Turning around, Bowser came to face Ludwig, who was trying to hide worry with a straight face.

"I thought I told you to go watch the others?" Bowser said, raising an eyebrow. When Ludwig was told to do something, the oldest child would always try to do the task perfectly and never disobeyed. Yet currently he stood before his father, no siblings in sight.

"Kamek was worried about you; he told me to check on you and he would watch the others for a while. How is he?"

Bowser shrugged. "Damn Medi-Koopa said he needs surgery or something for his head injury. Who knows how long that will take. Outlook is fifty-fifty." He said guilelessly. Ludwig bit his lip in worry, but said nothing. "I'll be in my study. Keep those kids occupied and tell them not to bother me."

Ludwig watched as his father turned and walked down the dim hallway. The halls were lined with torches which casted large shadows on the walls, giving the moment a somber and cold feeling. Sighing, he turned the opposite way and trudged upstairs to where Kamek and his siblings were, in the playroom.

Much like his father, Ludwig hated dealing with emotions. Unlike Bowser, however, the eldest Koopa bottled up his emotions and retained a calm stature; anger released rarely and when it happened, he was crueler than his father himself. Today, Ludwig felt like he had betrayed his siblings. Naturally as the eldest, it was his job to watch over and care for his troublemaking siblings, so they would not get into any situations that were more dangerous than living in a castle full of fire. Yet Iggy had a fifty percent chance of dying.

"Yo Ludwig? How's Pop?" Roy greeted him as he stepped into the playroom. Ludwig hated the room; toys were scattered across the room, paint and crayons covering the walls from Bowser Jr.'s moments of artistic genius. Nothing was in the right place, and half of the things in the room never had a place to go in the first place.

"In his study. Bother him you die situation," Ludwig replied simply, grabbing a book about Beethoven and plopping down in a beanbag chair.

"That bad huh?" Wendy called from the corner. She held a mirror and was currently applying a second layer of lipstick. "Daddykins will cheer up soon. He hasn't kidnapped the Princess for a while, he'll probably be doing that soon. How's Iggy?"

Ludwig shrugged, not wanting to talk. Wendy rolled her eyes, mumbling something about hating life with all boys.

"Knowing Iggy, he's probably okay. But then again, that was quite an explosion earlier. What if he has no head? Then we'll have to stuff food down his throat to keep him alive! Or he could have no legs, so he'll have to wheel around in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. I wanna ride in a wheelchair too. It looks like fun! I bet-"

"Shaddup Morton!" Roy said, chucking a couple of nearby markers at his brother's head. Morton glared at him in return while rubbing his head, but didn't say anything to retort.

"I hope Iggy gets better quick!" Lemmy piped up, ever enthusiastic and optimistic. "I have a new game I wanna play with him!"

"For all you know Lemmy, Iggy could already be DEAD!" Roy teased, turning from his coloring book to look at the smallest koopa.

"Shut up, that's not funny!" Lemmy cried, visibly upset and looking like he was about to cry. The second oldest koopa at fifteen was the smallest, and also the most emotional out of all of them. Roy turned back to continue coloring, feeling slightly guilty. He liked to push his siblings around for a little fun, but he hated to see them actually hurt or upset.

Ludwig cringed from behind his book. Unlike his siblings, he knew the dire situation Iggy was in, and that there really was a possibility he could die. Part of him wanted to tell the others what was wrong with their brother, so they would stop torturing him with their cruel jokes about him being dead.

"I'm sure he's fine," Wendy said. She had finished with her lipstick and was now applying thick coats of mascara. "He'll just be a big baby and whine about it for a while before going to his lab and blowing up more things."

"Did ya see the hole he made in the ceiling? Man wish I could do that," Roy said, pumping his fists in the air. "I should ask him to make me some kind of potion when he gets better so I can have the strength to break down stone walls and ceilings."

"You wish," Wendy snorted. Roy growled and stood up, pointing an accusing finger at his sister.

"Ya wanna say that again to my face instead of that mirror ya always carry around reflecting that ugly face of yours?"

Wendy threw down the mirror and tube of mascara and stood up with equal force as her brother, glaring back at Roy. "I said… You wish you could have super strength to do something like that. You can barely lift thirty pounds, wishful thinker."

"Why I outta…" Roy pulled back his fist to punch Wendy, but Ludwig appeared by his side and grabbed his arm before the largest koopa could move.

"You punch Wendy, and I'm throwing you in Father's study so you can deal with his wrath.," Ludwig threatened, his voice low and dripping with venom. He hated dealing with his siblings when the fought. Which happened a lot. Letting go, Roy lowered his fist and gave Wendy one last glare, before sitting down and returning to coloring his flowers.

For the next few hours unsteady peace remained in the Koopa Castle. Bowser, still holed up in his quiet study, impatiently tapped on his large ornate desk, waiting for the news from the Medi-Koopas. Glancing up at the clock on the wall, he sighed. He last talked with them at one thirty. Currently it was almost seven. Five and half hours without any sort of news was not good.

A timid knock was heard at the door. "Master Bowser?"

"What?" Bowser snapped. "This had better be important, or you'll be swimming with the cheep cheeps when I throw you out of the window!" Slowly the door opened, revealing the same shaking and nervous looking Medi-Koopa from before.

"Master Bowser, I must bring you some unfortunate news…"

"Unfortunate news?" Bowser stood up with a menacing look, causing the Medi-Koopa to cringe and shrink back against the wall.

"A-About Master Ignatius S-Sir…"

"Yes, I know that!" Bowser roared. Impatient and stressed, the Koopa King grabbed the Koopa and held him out the window. "Tell me, what about my son?"

The Medi-Koopa yelped as he looked down, cheep cheeps jumping out of the water at the sight of a delicious meal.

* * *

**Don't ask about the Medi-Koopas, 'kay? Bowser has all kinds of weird soldiers and servants working for him, so why not Medi-Koopas? Basically, they're Koopa doctors. Sorry for the awkward cliffhanger too, but from the summary you probably know what's to happen. Keep reading anyway!  
**


	2. Chapter 2

**I realize I haven't updated this story in a very long time, and I apologize dearly. **

**So finally, the long awaited chapter 2!**

"W-Well, Master Bowser… You son will thankfully live, but… with some problems," the Medi-Koopa finally said. Bowser squinted in a mix of anger and confusion, blowing smoke from his nostrils in the Koopa's face to scare him even more.

"What do you mean… some _problems?_" Bowser hissed, a venomous tone lacing his words. Even while upset, the Koopa King loved to inflict terror into his victims, to see them suffer. And, like in this case, also his servants.

"Well, the blow to his head was so severe it caused his skull to cave into his brain, in the frontal lobe to be exact." Bowser raised his eyebrows, looking impatient and very unamused. The Medi-Koopa swallowed, fearing a little for his life. "Basically that means Master Ignatius will most likely have a completely different personality and trouble performing even the most simple tasks."

Bowser dropped him to the floor, letting the Koopa scramble a several feet away, safely away from an angry King's claw. "You mean to say… That my son is now a handicap?" _Iggy is odd enough as it is… _He thought.

"It's quite possible sir," the Medi-Koopa said solemnly. "We won't be entirely sure how severe the handicap is until he wakes up, however. And there is a possibility that he might not even do that either. Nothing is for certain. An injury like this usually kills the victims within the first hour."

Tapping on the desk, Bowser thought for a moment. His kids were very independent; spending most of their time with each other without much supervision. Kamek tried to keep some order between the eight monsters, but usually failed. Ludwig occasionally watched over them, but hated dealing with his siblings' hyperactivity. Bowser himself usually saw them three times a day at meals (unless they broke something or got in trouble), and didn't care being around them much either.

This injury would change their lives; Bowser could feel a powerful migraine growing just at the thought of it.

"Sir?"

"How is Iggy right now?"

"We gave Master Ignatius medication for antibiotics and pain. If there is no sign of a coma or any other complications, he should be awake around tomorrow evening. When he is, we will further assess the damage taken."

"Can I see him?"

"Well… I don't see why not, but I do ask that you refrain from moving him. It could possibly make his condition worse." The Medi-Koopa led Bowser to the door. "Feel free to spend as much time as you want with him, but if anything happens please notify me or another Medi-Koopa."

Bowser followed the Medi-Koopa down the hallway, anxious to see his son. He wondered also where his other seven children were, as they were no where in his sight. Usually they never listened to a word their father said, no matter how threatening. There were various servants mulling about the hallways of the castle, all giving the King Koopa worried or pitied glances. Bowser scowled at them, making them scurry out of his sight.

The two stopped at a door, different from the one Iggy was in before; the Medi-Koopa opening and entering first. Iggy was the first thing Bowser set eyes on in the room, laying on a bed in the middle of the room. Stepping further in the room, he took in the sight of his ailing son.

"Before you leave," Bowser said, his eyes not leaving his son, "I want you to tell Ludwig to come see me here."

"Will do sir," the Medi-Koopa said, nodding and closing the door behind him. Bowser stood next to Iggy, looking over the results of the surgery. More bandages covered his head; coupled with the slightly amusing fact that half of his hair was missing also. Smaller bandages covered the rather minor injuries on the rest of his body. Several minor burns were visible along his face and stomach, and a few scales were missing or loose. Overall, however, Iggy looked a lot better than when Bowser had first seen him after the accident almost six hours ago.

_Dunno how we're gonna deal with you now, kid, _Boswer thought. His kids were a pain enough to take care of as it was. Adding in the new handicap would make it much worse. If it ended up as bad as the Medi Koopa said it could be, Iggy might need constant care and supervision. Attention that Bowser just did not want to give.

"Why do I even keep you kids? The negatives of having you outweigh the benefits," Bowser complained, but it was far from the truth. He would never admit to it, but the Great Koopa King loved his children, even though he hated dealing with them. Part of the reason he always kidnapped Princess Peach was because he wanted his children to have a mother, and they loved her.

As exhaustion was starting to weigh on the Koopa's already hard to carry body, Bowser grabbed the chair in the corner and brought it up to the bedside. The chair gave a groan as his weight bent the frame. The medical wing was a part of the castle the Koopa family rarely ventured into, so the once luxurious furniture was old and starting to break down. Their species were hardy and rarely got sick, and years of roughhousing and battles allowed the Koopalings to be able to spring into prime condition with no complications. Bowser was almost thankful that the Mario Brothers were kind-hearted and preferred to take out their enemies with the least use of violence possible.

Bowser gazed again at his son, and smiled inwardly. None of his children, not even Ludwig, were ever still. A trait from their mother he guessed, since Bowser had no problem with sitting on his colossal throne all day.

The sound of the door opening brought Bowser from his musings. Ludwig was standing halfway through the door, waiting for his father's permission to allow him to enter. "You asked to see me, father?"

"Yes, come in Ludwig," Bowser said, waving his hand lazily as he returned his gaze to Iggy. Ludwig followed his gaze as he came up to stand next to his father, his serious face sinking into a frown. They were silent for a moment; neither of them had much of a talkative trait to begin with. That was more Morton's end.

"Is he going to be alright?" Ludwig asked, looking up to his father. Bowser shrugged simply, never lifting his gaze from Iggy.

"They don't know yet until he wakes up. Or if…" He said, crossing his arms. In his peripheral vision he could see Ludwig's eyebrows lower, in dismay Bowser guessed, and could almost his intelligent mind work to reach a conclusion. A positive one, he hoped.

While Ludwig acted like he hated his siblings and wanted to be as far away from them as possible, deep down he was protective of them, an instinct resulting form being the eldest. He silently observed, from afar, where they were, what they liked or hated, and how they acted. The father their father sometimes didn't act like. He would never admit to it of course, because the eldest had a fierce pride and wanted to keep his reputation.

"Or if? How bad is it, father?" Ludwig asked. "Surely you can't _jest _about something like this!"

Bowser barely understood half of the rich vocabulary Ludwig used, but he continued on. "He said he might never wake up. That wasn't why I called you down here Ludwig." He finally tore his eyes away from Iggy, switching to his eldest's.

"I was there, father. I saw him before you were even near us!" Ludwig cried. Normally he wouldn't dare yell at his father in fear of him losing his temper, but this was different. This was a potential life or death situation, and the Prince couldn't stand not knowing of his brother's fate. "How dare you keep anything from me, or even the rest of us!"

"Yes, I know son," Bowser said, biting back his temper and angry words. This was not the time to be fighting. "You being the oldest, I thought I should ask you, though this is a lot. If he does wake up, the doctor said he'll be suffer from brain damage."

Any anger Ludwig had was replaced with a pang of sadness. Having taken psychology courses from the top establishments in the whole Kingdom, he knew very well what that meant. "Did he say how bad it'll be?"

Bowser shrugged. "Not sure, just mentioned something called the frontal lo… frontal something."

"Frontal lobe?"

"Yeah that's it."

Ludwig furrowed his brow in thought. Frontal lobe damage could probably be dealt with better than the others, he hoped, and had some uplift. Iggy would have to be watched closely, yes, but it at least didn't mean twenty-four hour care seven days a week. He was mentally making his own predictions as to how he would turn out, but he couldn't be sure until he saw it first hand.

He couldn't help but be a little sad about the potential future. As far as Koopas go, Iggy was a sweet kid. He was shy when it came to dealing with others outside of his family; which for royalty was pretty significant. With his siblings though, when he wasn't holed up in his laboratory, he was playing or fighting with them, especially Lemmy. Being almost identical looking, they were usually inseparable.

Ludwig sighed. Lemmy would take the news the hardest. He wasn't sure how it would affect him exactly; the second oldest was the most sensitive out of the Koopa brood. Lemmy would, however, stay at Iggy's side through anything; the thought made Ludwig smile inside.

"-tell them?"

"Come again?" He was too deep in his thoughts to hear what his father was saying.

"I said," Bower said, annoyance on his face for having to repeat his words, "Do you want to tell them?"

"Well…" Ludwig thought for a second. He didn't want to tell them at all; he doubted they would even understand anything he was talking about. Yet he knew what got to them, and how to break it to them. Yes, it was something he had to do; for them. "Yes father, if that is alright. I would prefer to wait, however, until the doctors establish a confirmed conclusion."

Bowser nodded, relaxing back in his chair. In the few minutes since Ludwig had first arrived, Iggy hadn't moved at all. It wasn't expected of course, but it still bothered him. From his other son's body language he could tell it bothered him as well.

"You watch him," Bowser said, getting up and heading to the door. Ludwig, surprised at his father's display of selfishness, followed him.

"What? Father, where are you going? Don't you think he needs us?" Bowser stopped and turned around, a look of indifference on his face.

"Perhaps, I don't really care. You're old enough to watch him for a while. Call the Medi-Koopa if anything happens," Bowser said, turning around and leaving the room. Ludwig stared at the door in disbelief at his father.

"I don't believe you…" Ludwig growled under his breath, snorting smoke from his nose. He knew his father was selfish and greedy; his traits had passed to his offspring too. But this… this went too far.

Taking the now free seat, Ludwig crossed his arms and looked to his brother. Fury ran through his blood; each breath he took was full of smoke. He wasn't partial to his father to begin with, but this was beyond normal. No true father would abandon his child during a crucial time, especially like this. No wonder he was so strongly disliked by so many of the other surrounding kingdoms.

"Take a good look at our Father Iggy," he said, looking up to the door his father left moments ago as if it were a fly buzzing around his head. "Look and see who he really is."

Shaking his head, he tried to get those thoughts out of his head. There were more important things to worry about than their father. "You better wake up or I will make sure Roy will beat you up until you do."

The threat was innocent and an attempt at crude humour, but Ludwig couldn't help but feel worse about his brother's situation. He hadn't felt this way since his mother had died, right before Bowser Jr. had hatched. Since then he had tight control of his emotions, bottling them up and constructing a wall for future protection. The thought of something happening to his siblings was always in the back of his mind, but he hid that fear with indifference.

That fear had become reality, something Ludwig wasn't prepared for.

After Bowser closed the door behind him, he felt a strong wave of guilt. Another foreign emotion to him; he hated it even more than sadness. It tore at his stomach and it was all he could do to not run back into the room.

No, he couldn't face his sons in there. The scene was too much for him. So he silently strode back to his office, taking the long way. Being physical took a lot of energy from the big king, and it allowed his thoughts to be somewhere else.

The halls were unusually devoid of any Koopa Troopas or Goombas. Normally he would be outraged that his servants weren't doing their jobs like they were supposed to, but today was different. He didn't want to deal with anyone pestering him or talking to him. Telling him bad news. The Koopa King just wanted to be alone.

He passed the playroom that his children frequented, and could hear them yelling as they were playing, or perhaps fighting over something. Most likely both; they liked wrestling each other and fighting, or as they coined it, "being mean". They didn't notice their unusually wayward father, for which Bowser was glad. It took too much energy to deal with them.

Bowser hated himself. He went from being the powerful, fearless king of Darklands, ruling with an iron fist, to a weak coward who couldn't even stand being seen by his own children. Reaching his chamber, he locked the door behind him and heaved his large body on the bed.

Ludwig could take care of things, along with Kamek. He was feeling exhausted, and the thought of sleep sounded amazing.

**I have very mixed views about this chapter. I started it with one clear vision in mind, but then it sorta… morphed into it's own being. I'm really trying for emotions and how they deal, especially with Ludwig. He's such an interesting character is you ask me. I would love your opinions!**


End file.
